Hourglass – Ambient Lighting Palette – Vegan Beauty Review

Price: (.11 OZ / 3.3 G – x3) $84 CAD

Initial Reaction: I was super late to this palette’s game. I had wanted to try it but never committed to it. Until one day I did & it was sooooo… worth the hype!!! Let me start off by saying, the packaging is beautiful. It looks and feels like a quality high-end product. I know some people complain that the packaging gets all dirty looking or smudgy but being a professional makeup artist, especially now with Covid, I always wipe down my products after use so I really don’t have an issue with it in that way. The powders aren’t soft & buttery like you would expect them to be. Instead they feel like baked powders, smooth but firm & strong. The shades are muted & toned down but not in a bad way. More so in a very neutral natural way.

Usage: I mainly use this on my female actors or for any beauty grooming for my male actors or musicians. This palette has lasted quite some time/usages & with such a high price point, I’m happy that it does. 

Skin Concerns: For a product like this, the main skin concern that it will address is brightening & evening out skin tone. A product like this should give a subtle healthy glow without emphasizing fine lines or pores. It should also not leave large specs of glitter or frost. 

Claims: “Create your perfect light with this palette featuring three shades of Ambient™ Lighting Powder, which utilize Photoluminescent Technology to filter out harsh light and refine the appearance of the complexion. Each of these high-tech, soft-focus finishing powders recreate an exquisitely flattering light source. The powders can be applied individually or layered to imbue skin with a multidimensional glow. Winner of Martha Stewart Weddings “Glow” award 2017.

• Powders mimic universally flattering light sources, not unlike having a personal lighting technician at your disposal. 
• By manipulating and filtering out harsh light, powders conceal skin imperfections, pores and wrinkles. 
• State-of-the-art formula delivers a multi-dimensional luminescence to every skin tone, making it appear softer, younger and perfectly lit. 
• Universal powders make them suitable for every skin tone, while each can be worn day and night. 
• The finishing powders enhance skin in any type of light, including flash photography. 
• Ambient® Lighting Powders named to Vogue 100 Beauty Hall of Fame 
• Vegan & gluten free

• .11 OZ / 3.3 G (x3) Palette includes 3 shades: 
• DIM LIGHT: A neutral peach beige powder that blurs imperfections and highlights a radiant complexion with the perfect balance of warm and cool tones. 
• INCANDESCENT STROBE LIGHT: An opalescent pearl powder that brightens the complexion with a celestial glow. 
• RADIANT LIGHT: A sun-kissed golden beige that enhances the overall complexion with believable, subtle warmth, and also extends a summer glow.” – Hourglass

Results: I mean I obviously gave away my feelings about this product but the results are amazing! I like to take a big fluffy finishing brush and grab all 3 of the colours in the palette. I literally just stir the brush all over the pans & pick up as much product. Then I tap any excess off & I apply the product all over the face. Because the formula is dry & dusty it doesn’t cake onto the skin or gather in strange areas. It just perfectly disperses all over the skin, creating a beautiful luminous better than skin like finish. It truly does reflect light beautifully.

I used this product on one of my actresses for the new SAW IX movie and when she got out of her chair & moved down the trailer to get her hair done, she leaned into the mirror to look at herself and she said, “Wow, what did you put on my skin? It looks amazing”! Since then, this has become my secret weapon. 

Of course you can always use each pan individually as different highlights for different skin tones or different desired outcomes. The pink tone can also make a beautiful blush topper giving a very youthful pop of glow. You can even activate it by wetting your brush with a setting spray to get a direct placement. Personally, I prefer the natural luminous finish but that’s just me.

Final Thoughts: The Hourglass Ambient Light Palette is definitely on my Holy Grail makeup list. I’m eager to try more of these palettes. I’d love to see them on different skin tones & get a little more play with the entire line of them. It’s also nice to have an easy to grab palette like this for quick on set touchups. A product like this will keep the makeup looking fresh as opposed to a product that has more fluff or powder which just gets thick & cakey. 

Will I Re-purchase? Oh ya. I want to buy all of Hourglass’ face palettes now after trying this one. I have a feeling they all subtly finesse & finish a face, creating natural flawless looking skin.

Where To Buy? Sephora, Hourglass

Have you tried the Hourglass Ambient Lighting Palette or any other Hourglass palettes? Let me know down below.

Ingredients: 

Dim Light: Water/Aqua, Isododecane, Methyl Perfluorobutyl Ether, Propanediol, Dimethicone, Polysilicone-11, Silica, Butylene Glycol, Coco-Caprylate/Caprate, Mica, Ammonium Acryloyldimethyltaurate/Vp Copolymer, Caprylyl Glycol, Carbomer, Cellulose Gum, Decyl Glucoside, Hexylene Glycol, Hydroxyethylcellulose, Lecithin, Phenoxyethanol, Polyester-5, Polysorbate 20, Potassium Sorbate, Pvp, Tocopherol, Triethanolamine. May Contain (+/-): Iron Oxides (Ci 77491, Ci 77492, Ci 77499), Titanium Dioxide (Ci 77891). Radiant Light: Mica, Synthetic Fluorphlogopite, Boron Nitride, Hdi/Trimethylol Hexyllactone Crosspolymer, Polymethyl Methacrylate, Octyldodecanol, Silica, Benzoic Acid, C13-14 Isoparaffin, Dehydroacetic Acid, Diamond Powder, Dimethicone, Ethylhexylglycerin, Laureth-7, Magnesium Aluminum Silicate, Phenoxyethanol, Polyacrylamide, Polymethylsilsesquioxane, Potassium Sorbate, Sodium Dehydroacetate, Sorbic Acid, Sorbitan Sesquioleate, Trimethylsiloxysilicate. May Contain (+/-): Carmine (Ci 75470), Bismuth Oxychloride (Ci 77163), Iron Oxides (Ci 77491, Ci 77492, Ci 77499), Titanium Dioxide (Ci 77891). Incandescent Light: Mica, Synthetic Fluorphlogopite, Boron Nitride, Hdi/Trimethylol Hexyllactone Crosspolymer, Polymethyl Methacrylate, Octyldodecanol, Silica, C13-14 Isoparaffin, Diamond Powder, Dimethicone, Ethylhexylglycerin, Laureth-7, Magnesium Aluminum Silicate, Polyacrylamide, Polymethylsilsesquioxane, Sorbitan Sesquioleate, Trimethylsiloxysilicate, Benzoic Acid, Dehydroacetic Acid, Phenoxyethanol, Potassium Sorbate, Sodium Dehydroacetate, Sorbic Acid, Bismuth Oxychloride (Ci 77163), Titanium Dioxide (Ci 77891), Yellow 6 Lake (Ci 15985), Red 7 Lake (Ci 15850), Iron Oxides (Ci 77491, Ci 77492, Ci 77499).

Hourglass – Ambient Lighting Palette – Vegan Beauty Review